An Examination of Some Rural Community Houses in Virginia

136 Pages·08.923 MB·English

by  Verner, Coolie

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ProQuest Number: 10614764
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1950
ACKNOWLEDGMENT
The author acknowledges with grateful appreci­
ation the assistance of the Extension Division of the
University of Virginia. Furthermore, without the kindly9
patient guidance of George Oliver, Kenneth Gleeton,
and Wayne Kemodle of the College of William and Mary
this study would never have reached completion#

TABLE OF CONTENTS
CHAPTER PACE
i# x m problem and definition of terms used i
The problem 1
Definition of a community center 1
Distinction between urban and rural centers 3
The method 5
Sources of data 5
II. BACKGROUND OF THE PROBLEM 9
Historical evolution of the community center 9
types of facilities used for communityc enters 11
Review of the literature 17
Growth of community centers in rural Virginia 19
III. ESTABLISHMENT OF CRITERIA 23
The democratic process of growth 23
Criteria for determining the democratic process 25
IV# SAMPLE COMMUNITY HOUSES 36
V. ANALYSIS OF THE SAMPLE COMMUNITY HOUSES 66
Functions of the canter 66
Factors common to the sample centers 72
VI* CONCLUSIONS AAD SU2#iARY 79
Evaluation of ‘the degree of democratic action
encountered in the centers 79
Common steps in the development of the center 85
Summary 91
SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHY 94
APPENDIX I AN ANNOTATED BIBLIOGRAPHY 102
II TABLE Of COMMUNITY HOUSES IN VIRGINIA 11!
III FLANS, CONSTRUCTION, AMD LOCATION OF TYPICAL
COMMUNITY HOUSES 117
c m x t m i
THE F&UEK AND tmiMItlQU Of TERMS USED
Cousunltgr centers are el only growing into ^rosiiaeiiee
in firgiaia as major features of rural social organisation*
They can perform specific services in protecting desirable
aspects of eowmity growth# There is a need in Virginia for
the rebirth of the democratic principles of rural eomxalty
organisation and these centers may assist in encouraging
such action# To achieve more fully the goal of creating an
awareness of the processes of oonsftmity action, however, the
organisation of these houses must be achieved by the local
oosuainity as a whole rather than by any special vested inter­
est groups within the community*
THE tffcflUM
abatement gg jjyt o^blem. This study is concerned with
an examination of selected consaunity houses in rural Virginia
in order to arrive at an outline of the procedure that may
serve m a t effectively as a guide to establishing such a com­
munity center*
MflfilTION OF A OOJtitfJilTY CENTER
The rural coimsunity ©enter is a means through which the
people and groups ©causing the rural ecanunitgr can share their
2
etmw* existence. It provides & place to meet is which the
social, recreational, and informal educational needa of the
oosauaity can be met. In the Social Mark fiigMA fo£ 1941,
F, G* tfcrt&an writes;
The eoiifflninitj has been defined as a see ting , lace
where residents of a neighborhood, town, cc-mi^ , or
rural area in which coxaaon interests exist, j,.ln in
educational, social, or recreational activities that
stimlat© growth, add to the general spirit of eoiasimity
cooperation, or make for better citizenship * ^
in a bulletin entitled Planning for GoTOWitv hSBHM#
'the Scottish Education Department describes the oo^»uunit§r center
as;
* • * a place where the people of 'the eosrciunity.* *mix
socially and informally with their neighbors* Fro® this
social mingling will arise a feeling of coiawon interest,
a sense of 'ecsottixilty1; ushers tending and appreciation
of other peoples interests will be created; dormant minds
m y be stirred; and in the give and take which will ho
necessary, people will loam by living them - the princi­
ples and practices of democratic government *2
In the rural mmmmX hf in Virginia this center is often
m adapted structure or a m especially built by the eoHsaioity
m a whole as a center for its common life* It is generally
amll and unpretentious, lying idle and unused much of the time.
Its importance mm a specific factor in rural social organisation
is relatively recent*
1 &»C« rforna, ^Recreation* in Soiyfol Monk Yearbook
1941. hew lork; Diesel! Sage Foundation, 1949, p* 4^5.
2 Scottish Education department, planning; for Gommunlty
Centres* Edinburgh; His ;4ajestyfa Stationery office, 1947, p. 2
3
The rural coBsouaity center, then, is an idea plus a
structure. It Is the idea of ccSBBunality ~ - ©f coaaaoa inirpose - -
of cutting together, of sociability, and of cooperative action* It
is m expression of the will of people to get together in concerted
action upon the problems comaon to then all. It sjay include a
building, but the idea can exist without it.
v u t u g 'Tz m m m m m m u mi> ma&L c & m & m
The rural comasinity center differs materially from the urban
community center. In both instance* the basic idem c.f a conscious­
ly created device enabling people to com® together is held in common
while principal differences lie in the origin, process of development,
and in the character of the facilities, program end leadership*
Urban centers tend to fall into two classes; settlement
houses and recreational centers* The urban settlement house evolved
from the intent of relieving undesirable slum conditions through
charitable and educational programs in neighborhood centers. These
centers frequently [email protected] extensive plants and programs under
trained and competent leadership* They ware rarely the result of
needs expressed by the neighborhood* They were, instead, the im­
position upon the neighborhood cf an idea conceived and promoted
outside the immediate area, although efforts umm made to fit local
needs* John McDowell in the oocial Worfe. fearfook 19,49 describes
the purpose of the settlement house as follows:
4
.,. a settlement op neighborhood house may be said to
have for its purpose (a) ^strengthening of relationships
among people who live in a specified geographic area?
(b) integration of the local community with its district,
city, state, and nation; and (c) improvement of the standard
of living as measured by family income, available housing,
and social services of education, recreation, and health.3
The urban recreational center generally results from the
planning and promotion of municipal recreation directors* Funds
for its erection and operation are usually secured through ap­
propriations from tax revenues, deorg© b, Butler describes them
as , generally owned and operated by a municipal department
and which are devoted exclusively or primarily to a diversified
program of recreational activities*^
These centers engage full time program directors and play
leaders. Programs are eoMSonly designed for children although
a growlag trend toward the increased participation on the part
of adults is evident. Facilities and leadership are frequently
made available to community groups and organizations. Planning
and control are largely the responsibility of the center director
and the municipal recreation department.
These two types of urban centers differ sharply from the
rural community center in Virginia. Whereas the urban center
most frequently gains support from those beyond its immediate
^ John McDowell, “Settlements and neighborhood Houses* in
Social Work Xearbock. 1949* Mew lories Hassell Sage Foundation,
1949. p. 464. ~
4 George Sutler, Intro jucUoa to SaSBaallX iecraaUon.
Mew iorks McGraw-Hill Book Company, 1940* p. 272*